


Designated Fate

by PumpkinStew



Category: Transformers: Prime
Genre: Force Feeding, M/M, Mindbreak, Mindfuck, Other, Psychological Horror, Tentacles
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-08-02
Updated: 2015-12-23
Packaged: 2017-12-22 05:40:34
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 9
Words: 7,601
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/909571
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PumpkinStew/pseuds/PumpkinStew
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Arden is just a simple Vehicon working on board on the nemesis, trying to survive for just another day.</p>
<p>Unfortunately for him, he catches the attention of a certain Communications Officer.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

I have been serving in this army for as long as I could remember.

When I was awakened, it was on the nemesis itself, drifting through space for primus-knows how many cycles. The moment I awoke, I knew two things; My designation is 4R-D3-N: Model no. 41527 and that my sole purpose was to serve Lord Megatron. 

Of course, along the way, I learnt new things and like many other drones, I grew to have a mind and personality of my own. Most of the autobots thought that we drones are simply mindless beings who do nothing but serve our respective decepticon commanders, but most thought wrong. Though we all have the same purpose, we all had our own differences.

For instance, some of us prefered our energon cold whilst many preferred it warm. We had our own cliques and social lives, the only thing that kept us truly happy in times of war. Having friends, was better than having none when you're in the Decepticon Army. You never know when you may be killed, regardless of whether in battle or whether by one of your very own commanding officiers.

When we reached planet earth, some drones who had a little bit too much free time came across a radio transmission from planet earth, we listened in on the conversation the humans were sharing. It had appeared to have been a song of some sort, singing about the hardships of love or some sort. Eventually, a particular line caught my attention, or rather, a particular designation: 'Arden"

I liked the designation, it was simple and memorable. My friends thought the same, and that was how I became known as Arden.

Enough about my name, it's about time I told you how this whole mess started.

Vehicons such as myself, are divided into three categories; Miners, Soldiers and Intelligence.

Miners, as the name states, are the ones who risk their lives, digging through large caverns to mine out energon for our daily usage and consumption. They 're the worst job that any of us could get, as not only was it tiring and required long hours, but by being a miner, you risk encountering Autobots all the time. As such, your spark could extinguish simply through being crushed by cave-ins or being shot by a Autobot.

Soldiers, are the ones who do the fighting. They go through all sorts of military combat and training. Though you risk your life in battle every day, drones were rewarded the most through this job, such as having extra energon rations or perhaps being a officer's personal assistant. This unit also had the most day-offs, not only due to the fact that autobots weren't exactly an everyday encounter, but also because the commitee didn't wish to waste too much energon on unnecessary affairs. By not deploying the soldiers too often, much energon was saved. Despite the risks of dying, many of us drones wanted this job.

And last of all, the intelligence unit. Though it may seem like the most slack-worthy job, it's not. You could spend up to orns on this job, regardless of what you're in charge of. There's much to do in this unit, such as keeping a lookout for autobot energy signatures or activating the groundbridge. Drones in this unit were also taught to be on high-alert at all times, pay attention to the energy signatures, keep watch on how much energon is being used and so on so forth. As a result, many of the drones in this unit could drop dead due to eons of being unable to recharge. Though they aren't out on the battlefield, the job is still extremely dangerous. Not only because they could be executed due to the smallest mistakes, but the commanding officiers could use you as a punching bag to take out their fustrations. A prominent example would be Commander Starscream, who oversees many operations and thus, rely on the intelligence unit the most often. There was always a time when everyone was trembling in fear when we realized that Commander Starscream was ticked off, thus risking our own safety as well as welfare. Due to the demanding nature and patience as well as hazardous risks of this job, not many drones wanted this job, preferring the mining job to this.

That's enough of explaining for now, it's time to move on.

Drones are generally divided into these three categories randomly and from the moment we have "graduated" from classes and basic training.

My name is Arden, and I am one of the unfortunate mechs to be selected to be in the intelligence unit.

I wouldn't say that I dread this unit simply because of it's nature, but there was another factor which made me wish that I was never onlined. The commander who was usually in the main communications office is what creeps me out the most, he goes by a simple designation.

Commander Soundwave.

Now, I'm not trying to bash him in any way. But this mech, just creeps me out, or creeps out every drone in general.

He constantly has his face hidden by a visor, much unlike other commanders, and he's silent.

Yet, for some reason, being around me, makes me feel like I'm being watched. Maybe it's the fact that his face is hidden or perhaps the fact that he had the unique ability to trace down any transmission from anywhere aboard the nemesis or anywhere on earth, thus allowing him to see what I'm doing.

And I would like to make one thing very clear, I really have a bad feeling about him, I just can't seem to put a digit on it.

But all my friends laugh whenever they hear me speak about my slight phobia of Commander Soundwave. And they usually tell me the same thing.

_**"What's the worse that could happen?"**_


	2. Prisoner of Circumstance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Arden helps a friend cover for a shift.
> 
> And greatly regrets this decision when he finds himself alone with the Communications Officer

It had started out like any other day.

Arden had onlined in his berth in the quarters he shared with a couple of other Vehicons. He was the only one in the intelligence unit, so while the others had gone out for mining or guard duty, he was allowed to recharge for a longer period of time. So when he had onlined, he was alone in the quiet quarters. He was grateful for the extra time given to him, the previous night had been hectic, having to deal with an Autobot ambush which threatened their energon supplies. Everyone was exhausted by the time the ordeal was over, especially for drones in the Intelligence unit who had spent many joors in the command center trying to contain the situation.

He laid on his berth for a few more nanoclicks, he got up and immediately started to get ready for work. He quickly gulped down his energon rations and picked up his datapad, which he would need in a meeting later on.

Today's gonna be just another day at work, he thought to himself silently.

As he walked out of his quarters, he didn't notice a small figure in the shadows of the ceiling, silently watching the vehicon intently.

He didn't notice the mini-con only known as Laserbeak watching him.

The meeting had been longer than expected, and Arden was relieved when it was finally over. It really hadn't been anything aside from a report in regards to the commotion from yesterday, some extra protocols and discussion on some issues which needed addressing, such as the updating of the ground bridge or the repairs of some parts of the nemesis. All in all, most of these issues were for the other drones to handle, and Arden certainly found the meeting to be boring.

He turned his attention back to the large computer screen in front of him, keeping track of the numbers and data which were being flashed on it. He mentally kept track of the number of joors it would be until the end of his shift. He tried to stifle a yawn, hoping not to be caught by any officers and deemed as slacking.

"Hey Arden!"

He turned his helm in the direction of the voice which called him. Another vehicon was waving at him as he walked closer. 

"Hey, Steve." Arden greeted. "What do you need today?"

"You're not doing anything too big after your shift, right? Could you cover for me in doing the energon checks?"

"Steve, I did my energon check shift yesterday. I don't see why I have to do it again."

"Oh c'mon Arden! Just this once!" Steve clasped both of his hands together. "Commander Starscream is coming over to my quarters to do a check. It's my only chance to get closer to him! Pleeeaseeee?"

Arden shook his head, never being one to understand Steve's crush on the commander and how he usually behaved like a high school girl just talking about the said commander. But he felt his resolve falter as Steve looked at him with pleading optics. Ultimately, he sighed and patted the other Vehicon on the shoulder.

"Fine, but just this once, okay?"

Steve nearly threw his arms around the mech, but managed to contain his excitement. "Yes! Yes! Thank you, Arden! I'll make sure to do your next shift!"

As he watched the mech rush off in the directions of his quarters, Arden sighed. Doing Energon checks were never fun, but he already agreed, and he was a mech of his words. He turned his attention back to the screen and mentally made a note of his change in schedules. After his shift, he would go do the energon checks, before he went back to his quarters to recharge.

In the shadows, Laserbeak watched the mech, replaying the conversation it had recorded between Arden and Steve. After ensuring that the recording was saved, it flew out of its hiding place and flew in the direction of its parent.

It was sure that his creator would be pleased at the information it just picked up.

After a long, tedious shift, Arden was relieved when it was finally over. He groaned in disappointment as he remembered the promise he had kept to Steve.

He trudged off in the direction of the energon storage, trying to make every step count as he tried to walk as slowly as possible. But everything must always end at some point. Eventually, he finally reached the doors to the energon supplies. He took a deep breath and tried to perk himself up with a few words. "It's not the first time you've done this, let's just do this quickly and get it over with."

Entering the key code into the doors, it slid open and welcomed the Vehicon into the room which was chock full of energon.

He whipped out his datapad and began to walk down the rows of energon. "Let's see... section A2 has 87.... section A1 has 134...." Mumbling incoherent thoughts and calculating the amount of energon to himself, he didn't take much notice when the doors slid open, a sign that someone else had entered.

He didn't notice when optics fell upon him, observing his every movement and expression.

He didn't notice when the doors slid close, effectively ensuring that he would now be unable to escape easily.

He didn't notice as the mech walked closer to him, taking silent steps and eyeing him like how a predator would to its prey.

He only took notice when he felt a presence right next to him, looming over him too closely and intruding too much into his personal space. He jumped and backed away from said presence, tensing up when he realised that it was Commander Soundwave.

"C-Commander Soundwave! Sir!" He immediately dropped his datapad and bought his hand to a salute. "M-My Apologises for failing to take notice of your presence!"

Frag it. Arden thought to himself. Of all mechs to come here, it had to be the one which creeped him out the most.

Soundwave didn't say anything, as usual, and simply nodded, a signal for Arden to carry on with his work. Arden picked up his datapad with trembling hands, trying to contain the fear he had of Soundwave. _Don't worry Arden Don't worry Arden Don't worry Arden He's only going to be here for a few clicks a few fragging clicks don't be nervous don't be nervous don't be nervous act natural act natural act natural_

Quickly resuming his work, it wasn't long until he found himself immersed in counting the energon stocks again. His mind drifted off to calculating the energon stock, failing to notice that Soundwave was still in the room.

And the Communications officer wasn't patient enough to wait for him to finish his job. Predators always strike when their prey is caught off guard. Before Arden could compute what was happening, Soundwave was standing dangerously close to him. He stumbled a few steps back, datapad falling to the ground once more, hitting the ground with a clattering sound. Arden looked around desperately. No one else aside from the two of them seemed to be in the room, his communications were jammed, probably thanks to the Communications Officer himself. The room was refined with nearly soundproof walls, so screaming his spark out probably won't do him any good. And Soundwave was blocking his way, thus eliminating the choice he had of dashing out quickly. He was trapped. 

With a few quick strides, Soundwave quickly cornered Arden in the room, circling around him and observing his every movement. Arden himself, was freaked out when he Soundwave suddenly approached him, and was frightened when he found his back touching the wall, an indication that there was no escape for him as Soundwave loomed dangerously closer to him.

He considered running again , but all of his chances were quickly dissolved when Soundwave pinned both of his long arms against the wall, effectively trapping Arden between the wall and Soundwave.

Arden felt his spark accelerate faster than usual, as if it was trying to tell him to run away quickly, to get away before he got caught. But alas, it was too late. Like an insect trapped in a spider's web, Arden was trapped and unable to escape. His mind was blank and he looked at the Communications Officer with widened optics. "S-Sir...?"

By then, Soundwave was dangerously close to him, his visor barely touching the helm of Arden's. Arden could hear his own cooling fans and internal gears churning, his knees weakening and limbs starting to go numb. So many thoughts were racing through his mind. Was he going to be offlined? Did he do something wrong? What did Soundwave want?

He failed to notice the digits belonging to Soundwave trailing down his inner thighs and his optics widened as an unfamiliar voice coming from Soundwave's visor spoke to him.

_**"Arden"**_

Before Soundwave could continue, a transmission alerted Soundwave of an incoming message from Megatron.

 **"Soundwave. We need you down here in the command room immediately."** Megatron's deep voice rang through the room, breaking the silence as well as atmosphere. Soundwave immediately answered to the transmission, releasing Arden from his grasp and walking out of the room. 

Arden was left slumped against the wall, still trying to compute what just happened to him.

But before the Communications officer left, Arden couldn't help but notice that Soundwave had paused for a click to turn his attention back to him. He couldn't see what was going on behind that visor, but he could tell that Soundwave was watching him intently.

The doors slid open and closed as quickly as Soundwave left, Arden felt his knees give way and his entire body slumped to the floor. His optics was still wide open and he still felt his frame trembling. The only question that now rang in his mind was _What just happened?_

That day had started off like any other day.

But for once, it had ended on a rather surprising and perhaps, frightening note.


	3. The Thought Process

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When one goes through a strange situation, the most logical thing to do afterwards is to think logically and try to understand what had happened. To think about the motives or circumstances and perhaps come to a more logical reasoning of the situation instead of straight-up jumping hastily into conclusions.
> 
> Arden does exactly that, and comes to a rather unpleasant realization of what the Communications Officer had in fact, planned for him.

"Dude, are you serious?" Steve sipped at his energon rations slowly. "You're telling me, that Commander Soundwave, of all mechs, cornered you in the energon strorage?"

"That's what I just said." Arden replied frantically, hands trembling as he sipped at his rations.

"Were you on high grade or something at that time?" Steve inquired, looking at his friend with worried optics. "I don't think Commander Soundwave is that kind of a mech."

"I'm not kidding Steve, for primus's sake!" Arden snapped back. "I was frightened, I thought that I was going to be offlined."

"Whoa Dude, chill." Steve replied. "I'm just a bit surprised. I mean, Commander Soundwave? He doesn't give a hoot about us drones! I mean, c'mon. Since when did he ever acknowledge our presence aside from when we're needed for the manual labor? Plus, I've never seen him acknowledge any of us dron-"

Steve perked up when he heard several voices calling him. He looked away for a moment before gulping down his rations quickly and standing up.

"I have to go now. But don't worry too much about it, okay? Side's, I doubt Commander Soundwave of all people would know our designations." Steve said, before walking away from the cafeteria table Arden sat at.

Arden was left alone to contemplate to himself and arrange his thoughts carefully. He tried to convince himself that it was just a prank. Of course, this reasoning was just a wholehearted lie, which Arden knew he was telling himself just to make himself feel better.

_But that's impossible, what would he want with me? I haven't done anything wrong... at least not that I know of._

Arden sighed, picking up his energon cube to sip on. He needed to collect his thoughts, think it out thoroughly.

Alright, number one, had he done anything bad recently? He thought back to over the past few weeks, in earth time units just to be a bit more precise. Doing a quick scan through his historical database and memories, he hadn't done anything relatively bad as of recent. In fact, he had earned the praise of some officers such as Knockout and Starscream for his initiative in recent missions. That should've been sufficient to keep him off of Soundwave's bad side, right? So the possibility of him having done something wrong was an eliminated option.

Number two, Soundwave's usual behavior. The Communications Officer was never one to raise a digit when it came to dealing with troublemakers, this behavior was what set him aside from most of the other officers on board the Nemesis; his eerie silence. Arden had never once seen him take action against any troublemakers on board of the Nemesis, unless it was an emergency. He probably left all the work to other Officers like Commander Starscream, who were known for being much more short-tempered. But in the Storage room... That was probably the first time Arden had seen the Communications Officer move or act in such a way, It was extremely out of character, to say the least.

Number three, was it a prank by another Drone?... No, it possibly couldn't be. He had seen Soundwave receiving Transmissions from others before, the one he had seen and heard play out before his visors was 100% legit. It was the authentic Soundwave.

Number four, what was his motive? Cornering the Vehicon in the Storage room, pinning him against the wall. What was the point in all that? Unless...

Arden could practically feel his helm heat up at what he was thinking. No no no, that was illogical, Commander Soundwave couldn't have been possibly thinking of... interfacing with the Vehicon. After all, the other officers were much more good looking, making the Drones look so much more bland in comparison. There was no possible way Soundwave was intending to interface with anybody.

But the circumstances, the soundproof walls, the way Soundwave had behaved; that was the only logical reasoning Arden could come to: Soundwave, possibly craving for a quick interface session, had entered the Storage room and by chance, encountered Arden, thus resulting in the strange incident.

There was probably nothing to worry about then. If Soundwave wanted to interface, he could just pick out another Drone to do it with. He probably couldn't care less about Arden, and Arden would most definitely prefer it that way.

Arden nodded his helm in agreement with his most logical reasoning. But there was still a missing puzzle piece to this, something just didn't fit quite right. His thoughts began to wander back to the conversation he had with Steve previously.

 _**"I have to go now. But don't worry too much about it, okay? Side's, I doubt Commander Soundwave of all people would know our designations"**_

At that moment, Arden suddenly felt sick as he recalled what had happened at the energon storage room.

He thought back to that unfamiliar voice.

 _**"Arden"**_

He felt his mind and stomach twisting and churning.

_Oh frag._

_He knew mine_


	4. Silent Scream

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Arden has a nightmare.
> 
> Soundwave finally reveals his thoughts.

_He was running._

_Running down the dark corridors of the Nemesis, trying desperately with all his mind, to run away from whatever was from behind him._

_The figure walking down the corridors, following him, stalking him, like a predator to its prey, who was he?_

_He couldn't see any recognizable features of his stalker, it was too dark to see anything._

_And the only thing ringing in his mind, was to run, run as fast from his stalker as fast as he could._

_He ran and ran, but the corridors seemed to drag out endlessly, as if he was in some kind of infinite Labyrinth._

_Eventually, he comes across a series of doors. It brings a sense of relief to him, he quickly opens up one door and finds himself being plunged into a dark hole. He's falling at an alarming rate._

_And that's what he keeps doing._

_He keeps falling, falling and falling, as if he was in some kind of bottomless pit._

_He's afraid. It's so dark, he's falling, he can't see. he wants to know where he is, what is going on, and who the frag is following him._

_He sees a bright light below him, and before he knows it, he's engulfed in the light._

_His optics open, only to be greeted by a ghastly sight._

_He's tied down to the ground, his bonds being what seemed like thick cables._

_He writhes, he struggles, but he can't escape._

_And his optics widen in horror, as he sees a shadowy figure steps in front of him._

_He feels his spark pounding at an alarming rate, as long, unfamiliar tendrils reach out from the shadows, patting him, stroking him, treating him as if he was a pet._

_And he can literally feel his spark stop when the figure finally reveals himself._

_Soundwave_

_The Communications Officer reaches out a hand towards him, as if he was about to grab him by the helm._

_He wants to run, he wants to, but he can't because he's tied down and oh frag the tendrils were touching him he felt unclean oh primus stop stop make it all stop._

_His mind goes blank when the metallic digits belonging to the higher-ranking officer was just about to touch him helm. No no no don't touch him no stop stop stop stop stop_

_His optics turns to the visor of the Communications officer, which greeted him with a blank screen as per normal, but for some reason, it seemed ten times more threatening than it was supposed to be. He could feel a dangerous vibe coming off from it._

_He wants to scream, he wants to run, but he can't._

_He was at Soundwave's mercy._

_And as the digits were about to touch his helm, he could hear a familiar voice which sent shivers down his spine._

**"Arden"**

_He screams._

Only to wake up, and find himself safe in his own berth.

He was alone again. Everyone else must have already left for their respective duties.

He's glad he's alone, as he curls up to his knees and starts to sob.

Laserbeak trembled as she felt the angry vibes coming from her creator. Her beloved Creator was angry, very angry and it made the mini-con sad as she disliked it when her creator was mad. Perhaps it was her fault? She let out a digital whine, trying to comfort her one and only creator.

Ravage circled her creator, feeling herself tremble in fear as she watched her Master clench his fists, a sign that he was angry; something that almost never happened. As the mini-con's sparks were interwined with that of their master's, both Laserbeak and the feline mini-con could sense what Soundwave was feeling, such as joy or sadness or what he was currently feeling; anger.

But Soundwave, after eons of war, after seeing so many comrades die before him, had become what many called a mech with no emotions. Which was why it came as a surprise to the two mini-cons when long-forgotten emotions had begun to stir in their sparks.

Laserbeak whined, while Ravage nudged her head against the hands of their creator, trying desperately to comfort him.

Their actions did not go unnoticed, as Soundwave perked his helm up and looked at his creations.

As if as a sign of comfort, he gently scratched the helm of Laserbeak and stroked Ravage's helm as well. Cooing the two gently, the two mini-cons began to calm down, cherishing the touch of their creator.

They heard a familiar voice.

"Don't worry, I'll be alright."

The two sighed, and began to close their optics, before falling into a deep sleep.

Soundwave watched his two creations slumber, mindlessly stroking the helm of Ravage, he had only one thought ringing clearly in his mind.

No matter what, Arden would soon be his.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello there, I would just like to inform everyone that this story will be updated weekly from this chapter onwards. Every weekend, either on a Saturday or Sunday!
> 
> Thanks for reading.


	5. Cat and Mouse

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The two proceed to play a game of cat and mouse.

It had been several days since Arden's last interaction with Soundwave, and the drone intended to keep it that way.

"Whatever Soundwave wants with me is most definitely not going to benefit me in any way." Arden constantly reminded himself. He reinforced himself with upgrades which were small, but would help him nevertheless. Extra sensory programs to ensure that he would be able to detect should anyone be watching him, extra firewalls to ensure that he would not be easily subdued by any form of mind control and possibly, in the worse case scenario, an invasion in his database.

The other drones could mock him, call him being too paranoid, but Arden knew better. 

He had already caught Laserbeak watching him from afar a couple of times. Of course, being a drone, he wasn't able to do anything about it. But it proved to Arden that Soundwave was interested in him, and he didn't wish to return that interest.

Perhaps it was paranoia, perhaps it was fear, but at all costs, Arden wanted nothing to do with Soundwave. He was scared; scared of who was behind that mask, and most of all, scared of becoming something he didn't want to be.

High ranked officers were allowed to do anything they wanted with the drones, be it personal assistants, personal bodyguards or even, personal interface pets.

The only one he knew of, who kept pets had been Commander Knockout, who kept his pretty pets in his personal quarters. Arden had seen them once, just once. 

__

There they were, two of them with collars chained to the ground. Their optics seemed to have gone hollow, as if they had lost their minds. His optics widened in horror, as he watched Commander Knockout touch these drones on their cheeks. They had instantly responded, moaning shamelessly and starting to self-lubricate.

__

Knockout had noticed him watching, and smiled at him.

__

"Be careful. If you're not careful and catch one of our attention, you may end up like them."

__

After Arden had passed the document to the Medic, he left the room, and began vomiting.

He did not endure Military Training, just to become someone's personal toy.

Arden would endure this, and perhaps let Commander Soundwave's attention drift to someone else. It was now a matter of survival and endurance. Arden will escape, and he not submit to what seemed like a designated fate.

And as if Soundwave knew what Arden was thinking, they proceeded to play a game of cat and mouse with one another. Arden preferred to call this game, the Mind game.

The game had only one silent rule; when the mouse is caught or when the cat is bored, the game is over.

Arden hated to be the mouse. But he decided to endure, just for a little while longer.

He'd find himself running along corridors, trying to avoid whatever's been following him. Sometimes, it was Laserbeak, and sometimes, he caught sight of a figure hiding in the shadows; Soundwave himself.

He tried to keep himself around as many drones as possible. Soundwave would never strike if there were too many watching eyes.

Whenever he was called on to do Energon checks, he made sure to never be alone. He'd drag along one or two of his friends, under the excuse that he just needed the company.

Most importantly, he tried never to wander the nemesis alone unless necessary. Other Drones could scoff at his paranoia, but it was better to be well prepared than to be caught off guard. And he smirked a bit to himself when he realized that his antics were working! Soundwave hadn't gotten a single chance to corner him, he always knew when to escape, when to avoid certain areas and when to run. All the protocols he had taken definitely improved his chances of surviving this game.

It was still too early to say, but Arden was confident that Soundwave would get bored of him soon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More drabbles about the cat and mouse game will be posted in the next chapter!
> 
> And Arden would certainly be caught off guard in the next few chapters...


	6. Error In Loading Sanity

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Arden's mental health has certainly depleted.
> 
> One day, it completely gives up on him.

To say that the original plan had worked, would be a large overstatement. In fact, things had only gotten worse for Arden.

It's already been a few months, and Arden's initial plan to just wait out the entire ordeal was certainly falling apart. Soundwave was still hot on his trial, and the Drone was beginning to faltar in his attempts to run away.

What had initially seemed to be shadows along the corridors or perhaps just a small glimpse of Laserbeak or Soundwave himself, had escalated to frightening encounters. Just one week ago, Arden had found himself running to get to his quarters, trying to get away from the figure which was following him.

When he turned back to steal a quick glance, he was greeted by a familiar sight of a plain, faceless visor.

And this dangerous game of cat and mouse was certainly taking a toll on his mentality. He keeps seeing hallucinations, he keeps seeing Soundwave, he keeps losing his usual focus.

Sometimes, Arden wondered whether those figures of Soundwave he had seen following him along the corridors of the nemesis were simply hallucinations, conjured from his own declining mental health.

But he has no time to worry about that anymore, in fact, he had no time to worry about anything else aside from making it through to the next day.

He runs and he runs, but he can only wonder, when will he finally be able to slow down to take a breath?

And things could only get worse from there onwards.

It had been one morning, when Arden was busy in the Intelligence office, trying to finish up a report in regards to an incident concerning a recent Autobot ambush in a mine in the South East Asia.

Arden was furiously typing away, focusing all of his energy on finishing the dreaded report when all of a sudden, he felt like his mind simply blanked out all of a sudden.

One of his colleagues noticed him stop moving all of a sudden, and was asking him what was wrong.

Arden tried to muster up the energy to reply, but found that he couldn't.

In a matter of seconds, error message after error message suddenly pop up.

**ERROR: COMPUTER UNABLE TO LOCATE FILE 23782687**

He felt his frame crash to the floor.

**ERROR: THE SYSTEM HAS RECEIVED A SERIOUS ERROR**

He can hear his colleague yelling for help.

**ERROR LOADING FILE: A:/ARDEN/SYSTEM/7897986151**

He can't move, he's lying so still, his frame is so numb, he can't move.

**FILE: 1./SFS/1278362817 D=FAILED TO LOAD**

He can feel himself being hauled up into the arms of another drone. He can hear another drone yelling to everyone to get him to the Medical Bay.

**ERROR: COMPUTER UNABLE TO LOAD**

It feels like everything is getting softer. There's a commotion going on, yet everyone is becoming so soft. Or it could just be him, he was getting tired. 

**COMPUTER: SHUTTING DOWN**

He manages to muster the energy to look around for a bit.

He sees the worried looks of his colleagues, he sees Steve in the midst of the crowd that was surrounding him, he sees his unfinished report still there.

He sees Soundwave at the back of the room, watching him intently.

**COMPUTER: SHUTTING DOWN IN 3... 2... 1...**

Then everything goes black.

He wakes up to a bright light shining in his optics.

As he blinked wearily, looking around his surroundings sleepily. He catches a glimpse of a Red figure, just standing above him.

_**"Ah, you're awake? Just go to sleep, you need the rest."**_

He doesn't know whose speaking, but he doesn't mind.

He's tired and he just wants to sleep.


	7. The Doctor is in

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He wakes up to an angel.
> 
> Oh wait, it's just the Doctor.

When the Drone awoke, he found himself laying on a metal slab in what he recognised to be the Medical Room.

It had been a haze at first, Arden being dazed and not being able to focus clearly. But when he eventually snapped back into conciousness, he found a Red Robot staring at him in the optics curiously. It was the Medical Officer-in-charge, Knockout.

"Well, well. Good morning, little one, or should I say Mr Arden?" Knockout smirked and used what appeared to be a small screwdriver to poke the Drone in the frame, which caused Arden to flinch involuntarily.

Without needing Arden to say another word, Knockout immediately grabbed a datapad laying on a nearby table and proceeded to read out the content listed on it,

" **'Incident occured suddenly due to Patient exhausting himself.'- 'Patient found to have many unnecessary programs running, which in turn led to his database unable to cope with the amount of programs running at the same time.'** Tsk Tsk, my, you really know how to push your mind to the limit." Knockout added, reading the report. "By the way, we nearly lost you because of this incident."

Arden jolted up upon hearing those words. "W-What do you mean?"

"Well, initially, I thought that you needed a simple rest. So I left you under the care of my lovely assistants who are currently serving under me as Apprentices." Knockout said. "But it would turn out that your little brain had been burned out to the point where it needed surgery to contain the damage being done."

"Don't worry though." Knockout added. "Your database is fine, all it needed was a change in exterior parts and a bit of rest."

"Thank you." Arden replied, grateful that his life had been saved. But the next words Knockout said would make him want to take back those words.

"It's alright. Besides, Soundwave would be angry with me to know that his beloved couldn't be saved."

The next things Knockout had said to him, made Arden sick to the spark.

"Wait, how do you-"

"Know that you're Soundwave's target? Easy!! It's obvious you know, from the way Soundwave's attention was usually focused on you whenever you were around, from the way he stalked you, from the way he reacts when someone even much less mention your name? Besides, you're not his first target."

"What do you mean?" Arden inquired.

"You're not the first pet he has kept."

"For the record, Commander Knockout." Arden replied with a tinge of anger in his words. "Even if I am being targeted, I will do everything within my power to avoid becoming the interface slave of the mech in question."

"Oohh~ Feisty one, aren't you? Perhaps that's what Soundwave likes about you."

"Please don't."

"Don't you want to know? What I meant earlier?" Knockout's tone suddenly turned serious and Arden could see a serious look in the Mech's Optics.

It would be a great disadvantage to not listen to what Knockout had to say, after all, Soundwave had most of the chess pieces in this little game of theirs. He needed to take advantage of every opportunity he had in order to escape from this game. "Alright, please let me hear what you have to say."

Knockout smirked. "Of course."

_No one knows exactly when his obsession had started. But one fine day, Starscream had been investigating the disappearance of a couple of drones. So tell me, do you know where he found them?_

_...No answer? Ahh~ Well, I suppose it's partially because you're one of the later models of drones. Hmm, which detail shall I touch on first?_

_Starscream noticed that Soundwave had been returning to his quarters more earlier than usual during that period of time, which is unusual, seeing that most of us considers him to be a workaholic. So with a group of mechs, including myself, we had gone to Soundwave's quarters while he was out._

_Inside there, was a sight to behold. five or perhaps even six drones all laying on a large berth, with optics so dull I could see right through them, literally._

_I was immediately called upon to look at the conditions of these drones. After much analysis, I was appalled to discover that while their sparks were still beating, their minds had been broken to the point of no recovery._

_They laid there, unresponsive to touch. Until Soundwave walked in._

_When the mech had walked in, all of them suddenly seemed to come to life. They began moaning, calling out only his name and self-lubricating. Not much different from my personal drones._

_I managed to convince Soundwave to let me run a quick check up on these drones. And wouldn't you know? All of them, their databases had been wiped clean. All of them had been conditioned to respond to Soundwave and Soundwave alone._

They had been broken, perhaps having been forced to accept what may have been their designated fate.

"And you're next."

"I know." Arden choked out with a soft voice, his frame having begun to shake with terror at the revelation of what Soundwave might do to him.

"It's weird though." Knockout said thoughtfully, picking up a nearby scalpel in his cloud of thought.

"Usually." He continued. "He'd have more targets."

Arden's helm perked up and he stared at Knockout curiously. "What do you mean?"

"I said it already, didn't I? He usually keeps at least 5-6 pets."

"You mean drones."

"Pets. I know what I mean, little one."

"...So anyway, what you're trying to say is that I'm the only one he's targeting?"

"Well, essentially yes." The red-colored mech replied. "It is rather strange though. You must have done something to catch his attention really well if he's already stalking you to such a large extent."

Arden sighed. This conversation was becoming too much. He stood up, trying to get a grip of his balance. Fortunately, it would seem that he had recovered enough and he would be well on his feet as long as he rest for the next few days.

"Well then, I hope that it is possible for me to return to my position?"

Knockout smirked. "Eager to return to the game?"

"Absolutely not."

"I really wonder what is it about you that Soundwave wants so badly. Could it be your frame? Your optics or perhaps how feisty you are?"

In a matter of seconds, Arden found himself being overwhelmed by the Medic-in-charge, quickly being pinned to the metal slab once more, which Knockout looming over him in a less than desirable position.

"You look so lovely right now. If you weren't Soundwave's target, I would be fragging you so hard right now." The Medic bought his lips close to the helm of Arden's, teasing him with his warm breath. Despite that, Arden stayed strong and withstood Knockout's assault.

"Please let me take my leave."

"Not until you beg."

"..."

They stared at one another for what seemed like hours, until Knockout finally relented and let the Drone go.

"Pity really, I want to smother you with my love and chain you to my berth."

"I already have a officer keeping his optics on me. I certainly don't need another one, Commander Knockout." Arden replied coldly,turning towards the door.

"Such a pity." 

Arden walked out of the Medical Bay, and swore never to find a reason to return.

Soundwave stared at the Medical Officer, standing there, watching him with a blank visor as he watched Knockout work.

After a while, Knockout finally turned around, 

"Don't worry, I made sure not to touch him."

Soundwave cocked his helm to one side.

"What I did was simply to analyse him a bit more carefully. Don't worry, I already have my own pets to look after; No need anymore now, do I?"

As if satisfied with the answer, Soundwave left the room, the metal door sliding behind him as he took his leave.

Knockout turned his attention back to his experiment, thoughtlessly keying some observation points onto the datapad as his mind wandered off.

"Now, let's see how you will play your pieces, Arden."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize for postponing the release of this chapter without announcement.
> 
> The next few chapters will be dabbling a bit more into the eventual breaking of Arden, I promise.


	8. AUTHOR'S NOTE: Designated Fate of this story

Hello there everyone.

I'm here to inform you all of a decision I have made in regards to "Designated Fate". As of this notice, I will no longer be updating the fanfiction until the middle of November. (Around 11 or 12 of November give or take). 

This is due to the fact that I have major exams coming up next month, and though I initially wished to continue this fanfiction as a side hobby while studying, it has come to my attention that my quality of writing was beginning to drop in recent chapters. I prefer quality over quantity, which is why I have come to a painful decision to put this series on hold.

I really do want to continue, I really really do. But with everything that is going on around me at the moment, with exams preparation and school, I just can't find the right time to sit down and plan out the story the way I want. The last chapter, was especially a side story I uploaded to keep my mind on track, and a futile attempt to try to get the story going.

I cannot find the inspiration to write, possibly due to the fact I am currently overwhelmed with the pressure regarding upcoming exams.

As such, "Designated Fate" will be put on hold until further notice. I apologise if you had been looking forward to more chapters.

But on a better note, I do not intend to stop this story. I have a lot of plans for this fanfiction and I intend to keep it going. But it is just not my priority right now.

Thank you for your support till now, and I hope you will continue to follow it when it returns in November.

~Failcousin

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> On a side note, here is a short preview of an idea I had! :')
> 
> "Soundwave tries to get Arden to refuel.
> 
> Arden refuses, but instead demands answers as to what Soundwave wants to do with him.
> 
> Of course, Soundwave always gets what he wants, even if it hurts Arden."


	9. Announcements (Spoilers: It's not being cancelled!)

Hello.

Okay, so I just wanted to make an announcement regarding the fate of this fic. (Geddit? Cus it's called Designated _FATE_ hue hue hue)

I started this fic in 2013, when I had first tired writing sex and wanted to drabble in stuffing, tentacles and in general, psychological horror. But eventually, I became silent and stopped updating because of mainly one major issue, I wasn't sure if I want to continue the story the way it was.

I felt that the fic was turning more into a dialogue fic rather than letting the actions of the character(s) shine. This is especially evident in the last two chapters, where you can notice it's (almost) purely about the characters talking.

I felt that the fic wasn't going in the direction I planned, and eventually I wasn't sure how to go about. Then things naturally fell apart; I lost interest in Transformers: Prime, I had school and work to focus on; I had new interests.

But of course, I still feel that I left something important behind. This was one of the first series I started that I was genuinely sure about. That's why I've decided that I'm going to revamp this series. I'm going to write it in the way I wanted, and I'm going to make sure I complete it. I'm not sure when the first chapter will be out, but it will be brand new and it will become a separate project, possibly under a different title. Of course, the characters and cast will be revamped! But Arden and Soundwave will continue to be the main characters, but it will include more of the other decepticons!

Of course, I will not be deleting this fic by itself. As much as it feels like a bit of an embarrassment, I don't want to delete a piece of work which others might try to find one day. I'm of course talking about those pieces of fanfiction I really liked a lot, but become disappointed when it disappears out of nowhere years after it was already posted.

So keep a lookout for it, I guess? Or you could follow my page for future updates! 

Thanks, and have a Happy Holiday! May you and your loved ones stay safe during this holiday!


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